Physiphora flavipes (Karsch 1888)

Elena P. Kameneva & Valery A. Kroneyev, 2016, Revision of the Genus Physiphora Fallén 1810 (Diptera: Ulidiidae: Ulidiinae), Zootaxa 4087 (1), pp. 1-88 : 36-40

Physiphora flavipes (Karsch 1888)

Figures 138–166 .

Chrysomyza flavipes Karsch, 1888: 380 ; Séguy, 1941: 115; Steyskal, 1980: 576; Kameneva & Korneyev, 2010: 622. Chrysomyza africana Hendel, 1909: 615 ; Séguy, 1941: 115; Steyskal, 1980: 576; Kameneva & Korneyev, 2010: 622, syn. n. Cliochloria senegalensis Enderlein, 1927: 103 ; Steyskal, 1980: 576, syn. n.

Material. Type. Syntype ♀ Chrysomyza flavipes Karsch and holotype ♀ Cliochloria senegalensis Enderlein : Senegal: “ Senegal Bug.”, “ flavipes N.” [bluish green labels], “2732”, “ Cliochloria senegalensis Type Enderl.♀ Dr. Enderlein det. 1927”, “ Type ” [red label]; Syntypes Chrysomyza africana Hendel : 1♀: Tanzania: “Africa or. / Katona”, “Assab / 907 VII” V–VI”, “Chrysomysa / det. F. Hendel / africana, H. Coll. Hendel ”, “ Type ” [red paper], 1♂ (same labels but “V–VI”) (NHMW), 6♂, 3♀, same labels, “ Type ” (HMNH); possible syntypes, 11♂, 4♀, same labels, except “ 07.VII ” and without red label “ Type ” (HMNH). Non-type. Chad: Ouarai / Moyen Chari, 16. iii.1966, 1 ♀, 20. iii.1966, 2 ♂, Boum Kabir, Moyen Chari, 8. iv.1966, 3 ♂, 1♀, 13. iv.1966, 1 ♀ (Hitchcock, Jr.) (USNM); Congo ( Zaïre): “Bas-Congo: Banana (a la lumiere)”, iii.1952 (I. Mesmaeckers) (MRAC); “ Congo Belge, banana”, v.1910, 1 ♀ (A. Gruvel) (MHNP); Côte-d’Ivoire: Lamto, “savane claire, Loudetia, plateux colores” 12.viii, 9. ix.1971, 3 ♀ (Lachaise) (MHNP); Egypt: “ Aegyptus ” 1♂ (Schmidknecht) (Chrysomysa flavipes Karsch det. F. Hendel) (NHMW); Gambia: 6km N Kartung, swept in very dense forest with glades, 20. xi.1977, 1 ♀ (Cederholm, Danielsson, Hammerstedt, Heqvist & Samuelsson) (ZMLU); Kiang West Nat. Park, 13º25′N, 15º55′E, 0 20 m, 17. vii.1998, 1 ♀ (W. Schacht) (ZSSM); Namibia: Opuwo Dist., Sesfontein 19º07′ 15″S, 13º37′ 06″E, sweeping, 1–3. i.2000, 1 ♂ (Kirk-Spriggs, Mann & Newmann) (NICW); Opuva Dist., Epupa: Kunene River, 17º00′S, 13º15′E, Malaise traps, 19–21. ii.1994, 1 ♂, 1♀ (H. Schumann); idem, 23. ii.1995, 2 ♂, 2♀ (F. Koch), Ombuku, Kaokoweld, 17º07′S, 13º22′E, 22– 24.ii.–2.iii.1995, 35 ♂, 52♀ (leg. F. Koch) (MNKB; SIZK); idem, 35km E Epupa, Kunene River, 17º03′ 37″S, 13º20′ 32″E, Malaise trap, shaded woodland, 9. xi.1999, 12 ♂, 2♀ (Kirk- Spriggs, Pape, Hauwanga) (NICW); Senegal?: “Macullo [???], W. Afr.” 16. vii.1890, 1 ♂, “ Cliochloria violacea Hennig det. 1939” (SMNS); Sudan: “ Sudan, Ed. Damer. Hudeiba”, 3. xi.1961, 1 ♀ (leg. R. Remane) (ZSSM); Tanzania: “Africa or / Katona, Assab” i–iii.1907, 1 ♂ (collector unknown) ( Chrysomyza africana / det. Kertesz) (DEI); same labels, 2♂, 1♀ (HMNH).

Diagnosis. This species can be recognized from the combination of cell r4+5 apically closed and petiolate, as in P. clausa and P. violacea , differing from them by the combination of entirely yellow face and bluish-green shining scutellum concolourous with the scutum (face medially darkened in P. clausa and entirely black in P. violacea and scutellum purple or reddish in P. clausa and entirely dark bluish violet in P. violacea ), as well as different structure of the phallus.

Description. Head ( Figs. 142–144 , 148–151 , 155 ). Frons 1.15–1.25 times as long as wide, usually with two pairs of calluses in posterior half and slightly concave at middle, yellow to red-brown, shining, with a few very sparse and fine whitish setulae above lunule and between frontal calluses, with small round white microtrichose parafrontal spot or without it (in small specimens). Vertical plates black with greenish sheen, brown or yellow, bearing 2 pairs of black, short, slightly reclinate orbital setae. Face entirely yellow to reddish brown, dorsal half of facial carina and antennal grooves with entire white microtrichose transverse band. Lunule, facial ridge, parafacial and gena shining brownish yellow or brown, gena 0.4–0.5 times as high as eye; parafacial with narrow, often inconspicuous or lacking white microtrichose stripe along anteroventral eye margin; facial ridge and gena without microtrichose marks. Occiput black, with large yellowish brown area behind ocellar triangle and widely yellow postgena; orbit between posterodorsal eye margin and row of black postocular setae without white microtrichose stripe. Medial vertical seta 0.4–0.5 times as long as frons width, 1.1–1.4 times as long as lateral vertical and 4–6 times as long as ocellar, orbital and postocellar setae. Antenna yellow to reddish brown; flagellomere 1 rounded apically, 1.5 times as long as wide, white microtrichose; arista bare, yellow in basal ¼, black in the rest.

Compound eye in live or freshly killed specimens yellow to green with pattern of four or five uniformly narrow purple longitudinal bands ( Figs. 148–151 ).

Clypeus yellow to brownish yellow. Palp black, microtrichose, with moderately long black setulae. Mouthparts black.

Thorax. Scutum and scutellum ( Fig. 149–150 ) brown to black, finely shagreened, moderately shining with green, usually transiting into golden and cyan (in Western African specimens), or cyan transiting into green and blue to violet (in Southern African specimens) metallic reflection, finely shagreened, except antepronotum, posterior surface of postpronotal lobe and notopleuron, as well as pleura mostly shining, except posterodorsal part of anepisternum shagreened; supra-alar area and tympanal fossa matt grey, sparse grey microtrichia, as well as postscutellum; posterior part of katatergite and anatergite subshining green with sparse microtrichia; posteroventral margin of scutellum short grey microtrichose. Mesonotal scutum with one (or two very close) acrostichal row(s) of setulae, pair of regular dorsocentral and intra-alar rows (latter having shape of digit ‘3’), all setulae very fine and short, yellow or brown; acrostichal and dorsocentral setae lacking. Other setae as in P. clausa . Scutellum with fine and sparse yellow setulae scattered over its disc and 2 pairs of black scutellar setae.

Wing ( Figs. 145 , 157 ). Entirely hyaline, with pale yellow veins; cell r4+5 closed, vein M before wing apex falling into R4+5 and forming petiole at wing tip (in smaller specimens sometimes curved and poorly distinguishable); postero-apical extension of cell cup 1.3–1.5 times as long as vein CuA2+A1, and 3–5 times as long as transverse section of vein CuA2. Length (2.8–) 3.4–4.9.

Legs. Yellow except femora often with brown spot medially, fore tibia sometimes brown and fore tarsus black with basitarsomere entirely creamy white or with base and apex sometimes narrowly brown; fore femur with black setulae; postero-ventrally with 4–6 thickened setae in apical half; mid and hind femora black setulose, mid femur with two rows of black setae.

Abdomen. Both tergites and sternites brown or black, with golden, green or blue reflection; abdominal tergite 1conspicuously microtrichose at base; tergite 2 black setulose on sides, in female, with pair of dimple-like structures (matt gray spots) laterally ( Fig. 163 ). Male postabdomen yellow, otherwise similar to that of P. alceae ; epandrium as on Figs. 160–161 ; cerci with moderately wide nipple-like structures; phallus with bare preglans and moderately long caecum 3–4 times as long as stipe width; preglans moderately long, as long as or slightly longer than flattened and wide stipe ( Fig. 158 ); glans as in Figs. 158–159 , with 4–5 short and narrow, spine-like lobes. Hypandrium asymmetrical, with large right gonite ( Fig. 162 ). Female terminalia: aculeus 6–6.5 times as long as wide at base ( Fig. 164–165 ); 3 spherical spermathecae ( Fig. 166 ).

Distribution: Afrotropical Region: Subsaharan Africa, mostly in arid and subarid areas.

Biology unknown; one specimen was collected in association with “bananas” and another captured at light.

Remarks. Cliochloria senegalensis Enderlein is an objective junior synonym of Chrysomyza flavipes Karsch , as they are based on the same specimen with a green label “ flavipes N.” pinned closely and hidden underneath the upper label and therefore omitted by G. Enderlein. The only difference of Chrysomyza africana Hendel is a slightly more straight petiole of R4+5 and M, which is of no taxonomic importance. I therefore consider these species names to be synonyms. The specimens from Namibia have more blue or even violet reflection on the scutum and scutellum, but otherwise fit the diagnosis of this species, including structure of the phallus.

Figures

FIGURES 138 – 145. Physiphora flavipes (syntype ♀): 138, habitus, left; 139, habitus, left, anterior and dorsal; 140, habitus dorsal; 141, labels of type; 142,143, head and thorax, dorsal and left and dorsal; 144, head, anterior; 145, wing. Scale 1 mm.

FIGURES 146 – 152. Physiphora flavipes (syntype of Chrysomyza africana): 146, habitus, left; 147, habitus dorsal; 148,149 – 150, head and thorax, left and dorsal; 151, head, anterior; 152, labels of type; Scale 1 mm.

FIGURES 153 – 157. Physiphora flavipes (small specimen from Gambia): 153, habitus, right; 154, head and thorax, right and dorsal; 155, head, anterior; 156, fore leg; 157, wing.

FIGURES 158 – 166. Physiphora flavipes: 158, ♂ phallus; 159, glans, enlarged; 160, epandrium, posterior; 161, surstili; 162, hypandrium, ventral; 163, dimple-like structure of tergite 2; 164, ♀, aculeus; 165, same, tip, enlarged; 166, spermathecae.